


Dancing Through Fire

by Megalodont



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Dirty Dancing References, F/M, Good Dudley Dursley, Muggle London, Muggle-born Culture, Muggle-born Pride, Post-Battle of Hogwarts, Post-Canon, Redeemed Dudley Dursley
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-29
Updated: 2017-05-29
Packaged: 2018-11-06 08:15:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 904
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11032221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Megalodont/pseuds/Megalodont
Summary: "It's easy for you! You have magic! You aren't scared!" Dudley shouted."I'm scared of everything! I'm scared of what I saw, I'm scared of what I did, of who I am, and most of all I'm scared of walking out of this room and never feeling the rest of my whole life the way I feel when I'm with you." Sam shouted,tears streaming down her face.





	Dancing Through Fire

> **_ It had a cup of coffee on the window and he was freezing his ass off. _ **

Dudley was going in. He nearly ran into the banana yellow motorbike out front,but he noticed it in time. The yellow stuck out in the snow. There were plenty of leatherbound bruisers around London,but Dudley somehow doubted this one belonged to one of them.He opened the door,the bell greeting him as he stomped the snow off of his boots. He pulled his hat off and stuffed it into his pocket before looking around for a place to sit. He fell in line behind a redheaded girl with a wicked case of helmet hair. 

That motorbike must have been her boyfriend's. He could smell her perfume and for a second, he tried to place the scent. It was the strangest thing he'd ever smelled. He shook his head,before moving up with the line. 

He glanced up at the barista-a skinny kid,with bottle cap glasses and freckles all over his face. Had this been high school, Dudley probably would have given him a wedgie-he very well might have. He had tried very hard since graduation to put that part of him where it belonged-in his past. He'd learned that was not how normal people behave and decided to behave like a civilized human, not as his ex eloquently put it"something just above ape on the evolutionary scale." 

Redhead checked her pager quietly, sighing heavily. She seemed to be expecting someone to contact her. Dudley glanced around the cafe,his eyes searching for an empty booth. There was one right at the back...His eyes locked on the yellow helmet. Redhead had claimed the seat. He sighed and turned back to the front,taking a step forward. Redhead spoke for the first time.

"Hi,can I have a hot chocolate and some biscotti,please?" She said, sliding the change over to the barista. Freckles rang her order up and passed her a plate. Their biscotti was the usual,most likely bought from the bakery up the road. Redhead finally took her hot chocolate and upon turning,smiled politely at him.

Green. Her eyes were green. Like his cousins. It was the first time he'd thought of Harry since moving to London. He quickly noted that Harry's eyes were a deep,forest green. Redheads were shimmering emerald. 

Dudley ordered a simple coffee before looking around for Redhead. He spotted her at the back booth and,noting the lack of seating approached quietly. 

It was almost like something was dragging him over to her. He took in her facial features for a moment, wondering what it was about her that drew him in.

Redhead was a plain girl; crimson hair-he suspected it was not her natural hair-slightly pale and short. Someone that could be easily overlooked in London. Still, something made him want to know her. She looked around for a moment,before gesturing for him to sit.

"It's pretty crowded,isn't it?"

Samantha Stanley. Redhead was named Samantha Stanley,although she preferred 

"Just Sam. " 

Dudley hadn't the slightest idea what he'd be walking into when he sat down in that back booth. 

"And my mum just stands there for a minute,looking at me. There's Kaboodle shrapnel everywhere and there's me sat in the middle of it all,Fourteen years old with this tube of lip gloss drawing sparkly heats on my face. I was a messed up kid." Sam was laughing by this point,trying not to choke on her hot chocolate. "Maybe that's why I'm single?" She mused, fidgeting a bit in her seat. For a twenty year old woman, Sam was quite hyper. Dudley thought perhaps it was some latent,undiagnosed ADHD, but as he watched her,he thought it could just be her. She sat in the chair with criss cross legs,her knees barely clearing the table top. 

"Maybe it's just that us guys are total losers." Dudley shrugged with a chuckle.

"Your words,not mine." She giggled, nibbling on her biscotti. She sort of looked delicate, but Dudley had learned not to underestimate people. Even if she wasn't a natural redhead,she was a bit of a spitfire. 

"So,have you always lived in London?" Dudley asked casually.

"No. I was born in Dorsett, before my parents moved to Nunhead. I moved here for Uni." Sam explained. "What about you?" She asked.

"I grew up in Little Whinging,in Surrey. Came here for Uni too." He shrugged. Sam nodded. Suddenly,the redhead's pager beeped,causing her to pull it off of her belt loop. Dudley hoped that she didn't have to leave. She glanced up at him for a moment,biting her lip.

"This might sound a little but weird,but my roommate is having a party tonight at her flat and she expects me to bring a date. I was kind of wondering if you would...I mean,you don't have to, I just don't want her to start thinking that she needs to play matchmaker-"

"Sure. What time should I be there?" He asked. Sam checked the pager again. 

"Um...Ten minutes?"  _That was unexpected._ Then again, Dudley figured that he could go to a party in what he was wearing,jeans and tee shirt,sneakers and the heavy winter coat. 

"That's fine. We'll just go together." He shrugged.

"You are a lifesaver,thank you so much!"


End file.
